The company that operates Broward County 's hockey arena in Sunrise and owns the Florida wants a $7.7 million loan from the county to renovate the facility. In a letter from Sunrise Sports and Entertainment, President Michael Yormark told the county mayor and commissioners that he'd seek the loan to pay for improvements to the center's ice seating section and the executive suites. The team previously had talked of a $14.4 million request to the county. Yormark said in his letter that the renovations would be a benefit to the county, extending the life of the public building, and creating jobs.

The proposed municipal complex is expected to cost about $28 million, but Coral Springs isn't going to borrow the entire amount in one go. The city's strategy is to borrow $10 million this year and repay it in 10 years, and to finance $18 million with a 20-year loan in 2015. Three banks have evinced interest in providing a $10 million loan, with interest rates ranging from 2.47 to 3.10 percent. "These kinds of interest rates will not be around for a long time," said City Manager Erdal Donmez at a City Commission workshop after Finance Director Melissa Heller presented the city's strategy for financing the proposed facility.

Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary M. Singer writes about the housing market at SunSentinel.com/housekeys each Friday. To ask him a question, go to SunSentinel.com/askpro Q: I am trying to buy a home and was pre-approved from my bank. Unfortunately, the lender turned me down for the loan. The seller is not agreeing to give me my deposit back. What can I do? — Sara A: The answer to this question depends on the contract you signed with the seller. All contracts for the sale of real estate must be in writing, and the written contract controls the details of the transaction.

Nearly 17,000 Floridians will receive more than $1 billion in relief as part of a record-setting national settlement with Bank of America, the Florida Attorney General's Office announced Thursday. Bank of America Corp. agreed to pay $16.65 billion to end federal, Florida and other state investigations into the sale of toxic mortgage securities during the subprime housing boom. The settlement includes $9.65 billion in fines and $7 billion in aid to communities and homeowners hit hard by the housing market crash that triggered the Great Recession.

Federal regulators have shut down three mortgage modification operations nationwide, including one in South Florida. The operations took millions in upfront fees while falsely telling homeowners they could get their loans reduced or stop their foreclosures, but then did little or nothing to help them, according to the FTC. Two of the owners of Truman Foreclosure Assistance of Miami were ordered, as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission,...

The owners of a Miami home loan modification company were arrested on criminal charges Wednesday for allegedly defrauding 500 homeowners statewide out of $750,000, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi said. The Attorney General joined with the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office and Miami-Dade police in arresting Ronald Rodriguez, Zoar Rodriguez, Berta M. Cabrera and Kelly Rodriguez, the owners of Best Value Homes Inc., on organized fraud and racketeering charges. Officials said the company, during six months in 2008 and 2009, collected upfront fees of $1,500 to $1,750, claiming they could get lenders to modify their mortgage loans, but did nothing for clients.

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers have added depth to their attacking group in forward Stefan Dimitrov, who is on loan for the Spring season from the New York Cosmos. "We're excited we were able to work out a deal with the Cosmos to bring in Stefan Dimitrov," said head coach Daryl Shore. "He's a player I've had some past experience with and he's a target forward who is good in the air and we're looking forward to him getting down here and playing for the Strikers. " Dimitrov, 28, is a native of Bulgaria who played for the Chicago Fire in 2009 while Strikers head coach Daryl Shore was an assistant coach with Chicago.

The company that operates Broward County's hockey arena in Sunrise and owns the Florida Panthers who play there wants a $7.7 million loan from the county to renovate the facility. In a letter from the company that owns the Florida Panthers, Sunrise Sports and Entertainment, President Michael Yormark told the county mayor and commissioners that he'd seek the loan to pay for improvements to the center ice seating section and the executive suites. The team previously had talked of a $14.4 million request from the county.

Lauderhill commissioners have unanimously approved a $380,000 loan to the Windermere Condo Association. The loans, funded through the federal government's Community Development Block Grant Program, CDBG, are slated to pay for termite eradication, electrical work, balcony restoration, landscaping, a sprinkler system and other building façade improvements. Commissioners approved an additional CDGB loan of $781,000 in 2009 to Windermere. Those funds went toward the purchase of 60 hurricane impact resistant windows, the reconstruction of utility and laundry rooms, stairwell replacement, lighting improvements and balcony railings in the association's 30 buildings.

The proposed municipal complex is expected to cost about $28 million, but Coral Springs isn't going to borrow the entire amount in one go. The city's strategy is to borrow $10 million this year and repay it in 10 years, and to finance $18 million with a 20-year loan in 2015. Three banks have evinced interest in providing a $10 million loan, with interest rates ranging from 2.47 to 3.10 percent. "These kinds of interest rates will be around for a long time," said City Manager Erdal Donmez at a City Commission workshop after Finance Director Melissa Heller presented the city's strategy for financing the proposed facility.

The developers of an aging and blighted low-income rental community in the heart of Delray Beach 's southwest neighborhood reached out to city officials to help pay for a makeover - again. This time the Auburn Group turned to Delray's Community Redevelopment Agency board for money to help revitalize the Auburn Trace complex. But with less than a month to commit to lending $700,000, the board decided not to hand out any money. "There's a need on one hand," said board member Annette Gray.

Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary M. Singer writes about the housing market at SunSentinel.com/housekeys each Friday. To ask him a question, click here . Q: We are under contract to buy a home. We have our loan approved, and the closing is in about two weeks. The sellers just dropped a bombshell on us that the home they are moving into won't be ready for another month, so they want to push back our closing date. We really want this house. What should we do? - Andrew A: The first thing to do is check your contract to see if it contains any contingency related to this.

Be careful in taking out student loans: They will hurt you later when you are starting out and trying to establish savings and investments, warns a Boca Raton certified financial planner in a weekly email. Mari Adam quotes the Pew Research Center as showing a young, college-educated adult without student debt has about eight times the net worth as compared to a counterpart who has loans from school. It's $64,700 vs. $8,700, she advises. Adam urges those with student loans not to delay in saving in 401k retirement savings plans.

After reading the story, "No escaping student loan debt," I have no sympathy for people who think payment of loans is optional. Unlike a car or home loan, what can they take when payments aren't made? Thinking like that is the problem. The debt should follow you to your grave. For long after you are dead, I will be paying for it and so will my daughter and her kids. You owe the citizens of this country, not the government. Think about it, a $5,000 loan taken out in 1970 and you are still paying — or not?

Wellington is pooling its resources to help residents age 62 and older whose homes need some aesthetic help with the Senior Home Repair Program, which allows eligible seniors to receive up to $7,500 toward qualified improvements. These improvements include making homes Americans with Disabilities Act compliance accessible, to fixing exterior code issues and violations, to making their homes more energy efficient and fixing any safety issues, according to director of community services James Poag.

A program that funds major property improvements with no upfront cost has closed its first deal in Palm Beach County : a $45,000 loan for a liquor store to upgrade cooling, lights, windows and doors. The savings from lower electricity costs should be enough to repay all or nearly all of the loan, said Frank Page of family-owned E and M Wine & Spirits, 1101 N. Tamarind Ave. in West Palm Beach. It's a step forward in South Florida for the Property Assessed Clean Energy — or PACE — program, already popular in California and other areas.

The Fort Lauderdale Strikers have acquired 23-year old defender Bryan Gaul and 24-year old midfielder Kenney Walker on loan from the LA Galaxy of MLS. The players will arrive in Fort Lauderdale on over the weekend and begin training with the team immediately in preparation for their Fall season opener on Aug. 3 against the New York Cosmos in New York. “We are extremely excited about Bryan and Kenney joining our squad for the Fall season,” said coach Günter Kronsteiner. “It's been challenging to prepare our team for the first game in such a short time-frame, but I believe both Bryan and Kenney can be huge assets to the Strikers and should make an immediate impact on the field” “We are truly grateful to the LA Galaxy organization for working with us to help us solidify our team for the Fall,” said Strikers President Tom Mulroy. “We hope to continue this relationship that benefits both organizations and the players.” Selected by the Galaxy in the first round of the 2012 Supplemental Draft, Gaul is a 6'5” central defender with a deadly accurate left foot. He spent his final two years at Bradley College in the Missouri Valley Conference playing up front, scoring 11 goals and four assists, including six game winners. He was named NSCAA All-Midwest Region his senior year.

Board-certified real estate lawyer Gary M. Singer writes about the housing market at SunSentinel.com/housekeys each Friday. To ask him a question, click here . Q: Due to illness, I fell behind on my mortgage payments. The bank filed a foreclosure lawsuit against me, and the foreclosure sale is a few weeks away. With the help of some good friends and family, I have pulled together enough money to catch up on the missed payments. But the bank is now telling me my only option it to completely pay off the mortgage.